Butterfly Wings
by autumnsbeginning
Summary: The sequel to Butterfly Underwear, in the Butterfly Books series. In third person this time. Allie is at it again, even though she isn't aware of it, and there is no set Plan for her this time around! Complete.
1. Perfect Picnic

**AN: **This is the second book of the Allie Bell Series. The first book is called 'Butterfly Underwear', in which I write in first person. Sorry about the confusion, but I'm in a third-person mood, and that's what this one is in!

_**Chapter 1**_

Allie Bell pushed back her hat and looked up. The sky was very blue that day, and there was only one group of clouds hanging out, far to the east. It wouldn't bother their perfect picnic day. The fluffy cotton balls suspended in the air were the friendly and pretty kind, the kind that looked like you could poke it and your finger would sink in. The birds chirping in the trees above made the view perfect. She tipped her head further backward to take in more—

A _thump_ from her right brought her back to earth and the preparations for the church picnic.

"Nice catch, Allie Cat," came a teasing voice coming from somewhere on earth as she snapped back into focus and bent to pick up her ball. She almost blushed at the use of her nickname. It had come from her obsession with a Disney movie 'The Aristacats' when she was a little girl. She would always go around the house singing the songs from that movie, and one time her father caught her singing, "I'm O'Malley, the ally cat." And, since her first name was Allie, the nickname stuck.

Allie grinned over at Justin and straightened. "Thanks," she said, tossing it up in the air and praying she'd catch it with ease. She sighed when it plopped gently and safely back into her hand. "I've been practicing all winder, just for this."

"Playing catch with me. I'm sure. Since we play catch so often," Justin said dryly, teasing grin and all still firmly in place. "And since when do you have time between classes and your party-animal roommate to play catch?"

"We _do_ have sports groups that do stuff on weekends," Allie said, knowing very well that she was not answering his question and that he would probably catch her avoidance.

"Quit dodging my question."

A voice cleared—just in time, thought Allie—from a few feet away. Justin's very stressed-out mother who was also the host of the picnic was standing and frowning over at the slacking college students. They were playing catch with a newfound ball that Justin had lost months ago, all the while everybody else worked.

"We have decorating, table moving, sweet-corn husking, sweeping, and balloon hanging to do, all before the people start arriving!" And with that, Mrs. Hughes thrust a bag of crepe paper streamers and balloons into her son's hands. With a shrug, he sat down on the front steps and started blowing up balloons.

Justin's house was huge. He lived in one of those rich neighborhoods out in the country, and his lawn was the biggest Allie had ever seen. It was perfect for the annual church picnic, with plenty of chatting space for the adults and a swing set, pool, and hammock for the kids to play on. Tables, benches, and folding lawn chairs were spread out between the trees, a high school student that had volunteered to help was sweeping the extra large driveway, and people were picking up sticks from the trees that had landed on the lawn, tossing them in the faithful wheelbarrow.

Allie was watching 'the boss', Justin's perfectionist mother, shooting orders left and right to her high school recruits. Allie grinned, forgetting about the balloon on her lips that was in the process of being blown up, and giggled at the sound it made. Justin, turning, sent an odd look her way, which she returned with a smack across the face with her half-air-filled balloon.

He gave her hair a tug. "You look like a little girl with your pigtails."

"It's what I was going for," Allie replied sarcastically. She'd braided her hair into to pigtails and stuck a baseball cap on top, the perfect picnic hairdo.

Having blown up half the balloons in the bag, they focused on winding streamers up the poles and from the windows and tables.

"So…" Allie started, "How was your second year of college?"

"Boring, tedious, and fun," Justin replied, as if it was only typical. "How about yours?"

Allie laughed. "I've never heard those three words used in one sentence, much less describing the same thing." She shrugged. "My year was okay, I guess, considering how much sleep I lost waiting for my roommate to get home. That girl is what you said, a party animal."

"You wait up for her?" Justin's expression softened. Okay, so he wasn't as sarcastic and hard-hearted as she'd once thought. When she was younger, she'd had the biggest crush on him, and had been scared to death whenever facing him because of his sarcastic comments. She'd been so nervous around him that she could never find a comeback to shoot back at him, and therefore hadn't caught his attention whatsoever. Now that she was a college student and didn't care what the heck he thought of her, she'd gotten him good with several retorts and subsequently earned his respect and friendship.

"What am I supposed to do?" asked Allie, shrugging as she handed him a piece of tape. She looked up at him as he twisted the two streamers together and taped them in a sort of upside down McDonald's sign above the window. "I mean, what if she's out there somewhere, hurt or lost or in a situation worse than that, and I'm at home sleeping when I could have done something to help her. I would never get that off my conscience, and I would always feel guilty."

"Does she know all of this?" He cut the ends of the streamers at the bottom of the window, letting them hang down and blow in the wind. He hopped off the table and examined his work.

"What, am I supposed to tell her or something?" Allie asked.

Justin shrugged. "I think my creation looks good."

She gave him a playful shove. "And who came up with the _design_? And you could have never done it without a tape person. I mean, I was there handing you tape and giving you moral support the whole entire time, and you give me no credit."

"Okay, thanks _Allie,_ for your moral support," Justin said sarcastically.

Just then a wolf whistle sounded behind her. "Well, don't you look just downright _bella_," said the same voice that whistled at her. "I can see that I nicknamed you well!"

Allie spun and ran to her aunt. "Tia Christie! When did you get here? _Why _are you here?"

Christie hugged her niece tight and stepped back to examine the younger girl a bit more. "Oh, well, I decided to come and visit, since you're going to be home for the summer. What better a way to spend money than to see my gorgeous niece?"

Allie blushed. "Thanks, Tia. How did you know I'd be here?"

Christie smiled. "I stopped by your house, and your mother said you were here, helping out before the picnic. I decided to come and surprise you." She looked past her shoulder. "Is that _Justin_ I see over there?"

Allie shushed her aunt and blushed at the same time. "Yes, that's him. But… I think things are different now."

"You don't get all sweaty and nervous around him anymore?" asked Christie as if it were the most natural thing in the world to ask.

Ignoring the question and grabbing her aunt's hand, she led her over to Justin, who was standing back to watch the reunion. "Justin, this is my Tia Christie," Allie cleared her throat, "My _aunt_ Christie, whom I think you've met before. It's been a long time."

"Oh, yes, it has," Christie grinned and shook Justin's hand.


	2. Butterfly Wings

_**Chapter Two**_

Whenever Allie saw a butterfly, she was reminded of her butterfly underwear. Back when she had her infatuation with Justin, she'd had this plan to marry him and make him like her, whether he wanted to or not. She'd also bought a pair of underwear that was black with little butterflies embroidered on them. Whenever she wore her underwear, something good always happened, and she considered them her lucky underwear.

Now a junior-to-be in college, her butterfly underwear seemed silly and long forgotten.

Allie sat on the bench a few feet from Justin's underground pool, sipping a cup of lemonade after saying goodbye to most of the picnic's guests. Justin and two of his friends had waited a while until there were only about five families left and hardly any kids in the pool to go swimming. Then they'd gotten the crazy idea to play football in the pool.

It was rather entertaining to watch. It wasn't real football, it was something like monkey-in-the-middle, or keep-away, those games that were familiar during junior high but were no longer played so frequently during college. The pool had a shallow end, where the water was only five feet deep, but then it sloped down to the deep end where it was nearly twelve feet. Jeff was on the diving board above the deeper water, and Justin and Steve on the other side. They would toss the football back and forth, the two in the shallow end always competing, wrestling, and fighting over the ball.

Then there were the little kids in the middle who would occasionally get smacked in the head with the stray football, or get run into by a wrestling Justin and Steve. Allie almost felt sorry for them but wasn't about to tell them to stop. It was like watching television or reading a book, watching the football go back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, and her eyes along with it.

Despite what she tried to tell herself, she also enjoyed watching Justin and his bare torso play football. She almost blushed at the thought.

Tia Christie, of course, joined her after a while. "Boy, that Justin has a body, doesn't he?"

Allie looked at her aunt in surprise. "Tia, you're married!"

"And my husband has a fantastic body, too," Christie said with a sense of finality, but then she continued to explain. "_Bella_, bodies and faces don't matter a bit to me… and they shouldn't matter to anyone else. Would you like to have a husband—or boyfriend—that was drop-dead good-looking but whom had the guts to make you pay half-and-half for all your dates? Who didn't even think about an engagement ring when he popped the question? Of course, you've _never _heard the phrase, "Looks don't matter" before."

Allie protested, "But what does this have to do with looking at another guy when you're married? I mean, doesn't it feel like you're cheating on him?"

Christie shook her head. "A boy might be good-looking to me, but not even the hottest hunk in the world could change my love for my husband. I might think somebody is hot in passing, but that has nothing to do with love." She winked. "My husband's looks are just a bonus."

Allie was horrified and amused at the same time. Her aunt had a way of being completely blunt and uninhibited. _It shouldn't surprise you anymore, Al_, she told herself as she turned her attention back to the game.

A monarch butterfly fluttered past and landed on the edge of the bench, the sun bringing out the beautiful in its wings.

"It's just like a butterfly, Allie," Christie said softly. "Its wings might be gorgeous, but that insect doesn't have a clue what two plus two is. Heck, it might not even have a brain."

"That was profound, _Tia_," Allie laughed. Yes, blunt was a great word to describe her aunt.


	3. You're Invited

_**Chapter Three**_

It was near five, and with all swimming done, Justin, Jeff, Steve, and Allie sat on the porch steps, watching the last vehicle drive away. It had been a good picnic, one of the best, Allie concluded. With a sigh, her gaze turned to Justin, who was looking right back at her.

"Hey, Allie, we're just ordering a pizza in a few minutes," Justin said to her. "My mom doesn't feel like cooking and we're all tired. We were thinking dinner—that would be the pizza part—and a movie."

Allie grinned. "Is this an invitation?"

"No, I was just letting you know," Justin said, and he gestured to his two friends to get up and follow him inside.

A very confused and angry Allie sat fuming on the porch steps as she heard the _click_ of the door and the boys taking their shoes off inside. Justin was always so sarcastic, and his comments always made it impossible to decide whether he was being serious or not.

"Justin!" Allie yelled, clenching her fists, not even looking to see if he'd come back to the door. Just after a few seconds, he came back out and sat by her on the steps.

"You're invited, Allie Cat," he said with an evil grin on his face, though his tone was softer and kinder; even though he meant it to be that way, his manner didn't help at all.

She glared back at him, flicking him hard on the shoulder as she got up to go inside, taking off her shoes in the front door. She wasn't sure whether she should—or _was_—embarrassed or angry. Both, she decided when heat crept up her neck as she walked into the kitchen. It was as if Justin made a point in making her feel like a fool! He didn't do it to any of his friends, or anyone else for that matter, and when he did they knew how to handle it. Could it be she was simply an outsider?

Steve was ordering a pizza on the phone as if it were his own house, and Jeff turned to look at her with sympathy in his expression as Justin went into the restroom.

"It's okay, Allie," Jeff said. "Just bear with him. He can be a little…"

"Arrogant? Insufferable? Unbearable? Bigheaded? Egotistical? Conceited?" Allie shook her head. "I could go on for hours."

"I'm sure you could," he agreed.

"Does he handpick his victims, making them think he's not going to strike and then all of a sudden, he unexpectedly hits?" Allie said. "I mean, it seems as if I'm the only one he picks on."

Jeff clicked his tongue and shook his head sadly. "You _do_ know why he's that way?"

Allie raised her eyebrows as if to say "Go on."

"You _don't_?" Jeff was actually surprised. "He likes you."

"He's always picked on me, ever since he first moved here… years ago," Allie said without belief. "I mean, he can't have liked me for that long. It's impossible."

"He picked on you then just because he was without compassion."

"Or mercy," Allie added.

Jeff smiled. "I think he picked on you because it was funny to see how you reacted. I was there, remember? In the youth group? I was even there when we went _whitewater rafting_."

Allie frowned. "You know I was just attempting to splash him when I fell out, right?"

He shrugged. "Doesn't matter anymore. I don't think he even remembers it, so your embarrassment is unnecessary." Again he shrugged, as if he couldn't think of anything else to do. "But I do know that he does like you now."

"I doubt it," Allie said, sitting on the stools that were lined up against the island counter, twirling around. Their conversation was shorted when Justin walked back into the room, and she was almost relieved. She didn't even want to _think_ about the possibility that he might be interested in her.

Besides, the word 'like' sounded a lot like junior high, when a girl who thought a guy was cute would go and ask his best friend if he 'liked' her, too. It seemed childish, and brought back the naïve feelings she'd felt for Justin back when she'd had her lucky butterfly underwear…and The Plan.

"What'd you order, Steve?" Justin asked, slipping into the chair next to her.

Allie was spinning and didn't notice his presence in the stool next to hers, and while concentrating on her legs as the kitchen sped by in a blur, she watched in almost slow motion as her knees came into contact with his. And the image kept repeating itself, all in slow motion, again, again, again… and she forgot to move her knees.

Bringing herself out of her trance, she locked gazes with Justin, who was looking at her with a mix of amusement and warmth. Allie didn't have time to wonder what his look meant before he said, "You mean you didn't even ask our lady guest what kind of pizza she wanted?"

"Shall I bow at her feet, too?" Steve asked sarcastically as if asking her what toppings she preferred was some sort of sacrifice that implied she was in charge or took precedence over the men.

"It might soften the blows I'll deliver straight to your nose if you keep up the arrogant attitude you have toward women," quipped Allie proudly, glaring intentionally at Justin's friend, who seemed to have the same contemptuous personality.

"It will be here in fifteen minutes," Steve said, ignoring both her retort and her threat. Little did he know that she was capable of making it good.


	4. Peppered Popcorn

_**Chapter Four**_

Allie watched as Justin sat, with deliberation she was sure, next to her on the couch in his upstairs TV room. Jeff and the tenacious Steve—who had continued to make acerbic comments about her the whole evening—sat in the two recliners on either side of the couch. She wasn't sure whether she liked the fact that he was sitting next to her or not. Part of her still wanted to have that crush she'd had on him in high school return, and yet another fraction of her didn't want to get involved in any more heartbreaking relationships, whether one-sided or not. She certainly did _not_ want to risk having feelings for him again only to have him not return them… despite whatever the reputable Jeff was positive about.

"Want some popcorn?" Justin asked.

With a grin Allie took the entire bowl from him and set it on her lap, ready to dig in as soon as the movie started. Popcorn and starburst were the only things she'd never given up throughout her life—throughout braces and all. "Do you have pepper?"

"_Pepper_?" Justin questioned with a frown.

Pepper was a tradition for her; she always had pepper on her popcorn. It gave it a spicy taste while you could still sense some butter on it. "Just tell me where the pepper is."

Justin shook his head. "I'll get it," he saluted, and bounded down the stairs, leaving a shocked Allie holding a pepper-free large bowl of popcorn, obviously intended for them to share since Jeff and Steve each had their own smaller bowls of it.

"I tell ya," Jeff sighed, crunching on one of the kernels he'd found on the bottom of his bowl. "He's got feelings for you."

Allie shook her head in denial, not liking at all that she was getting a heads-up from one of his friends. Again she felt as if she were in junior high all over again. She refused to get a buzz from Jeff's claim.

Thirty seconds later Justin sat next to her and her peppered popcorn on the couch, and a movie playing in the DVD player. Star Wars Episode I kept her on her toes, and so did Justin sitting next to her… scooting closer, she was sure, throughout the entire movie. She half-expected him to try the yawn-and-stretch-and-put-your-arm-around-her move.

* * *

Justin stifled the urge to yawn as he followed Allie downstairs, watching her blond hair swish from side to side as she took them two at a time. She was always the bouncy, bubbly type, but she could also be very shy. He'd found that out in high school. But since college happened, she'd become more… he didn't know what to call it. She almost always found the perfect retort for his sarcasm and was suddenly friendly and teasing with him.

Suddenly she became his type.

He sat in a chair by the kitchen table, and when she threw him a questioning glance he realized he was smiling.

Jeff followed, flipping his keys up into the air and catching them again, with Steve in tow. "Hey, guys, I've got work in the morning, bright and early. I'd like to be irresponsible and stay up late with you crazy kids, but then I would only pay for it in the morning."

Steve nodded and shrugged. "He's my ride, so if he's going to be a party crasher, I guess I have to tag along."

Justin and Allie smiled and bid them goodbye. As they walked out the door, Allie took her favorite place on the stairs to look down on Justin.

"Are the stairs more comfortable than the chairs?" Justin asked with an eyebrow raised, gesturing to her spot.

She rested her elbows on her knees and her chin on her fist, shrugging and saying, "I don't know. At my house, our stairs come out into the kitchen like this, too. I'm used to sitting there, I guess."

Justin looked up at her, and she could tell he was about to tease by the look on his face. "I think you just like looking down at me."

Allie smiled. "Maybe that's it." Justin liked how she yawned, leaning her head back and then coming back down out of it with a small smile on her face. She took her hand from her mouth and rubbed her eyes. "I'm glad I don't have to work tomorrow like Jeff. I'm going to sleep in." Her expression was thoughtful. "Jeff is a pretty nice guy, you know."

Justin wanted to shake himself to get the ugly feeling out of him. He hated jealousy, despised the emotion with all his heart, but whenever it came onto him he couldn't get it off. It was a lot like selfishness, his mother always told him, wanting what somebody else had for yourself, and he hated knowing that both of those words—jealousy and selfishness—could be used to describe him.

To distract himself from the feeling, he grinned. "He also has a _girlfriend_, you know."

Allie frowned. "That's not exactly what I was going for. I was just saying that he's a nice guy. There are _a lot_ of nice guys out there, and sometimes you could be counted as one of those."

"_Sometimes_, eh?" Justin asked, raising his eyebrows. He got up out of his chair, and putting his thoughts into action asked, "Want to go on a walk with me?"

Allie hoped her expression didn't betray the surprise that she was feeling. All of Jeff's words came rushing back to her. _"You _do_ know why he's that way?"_

Justin was looking at her expectantly, and Allie said, "In the dark?" for lack of anything else to say.

He grinned that grin that was so popular, at least to her. "What, are you scared of the dark?"

She straightened and glared over at him. "Of course not. Let's go."

Before she could stand up, Justin was there, offering his hand to her. When she put her hand in his and used it to pull up, she willed the goose bumps that stood up on her skin to go away. She didn't want to be attracted to him. She'd just have to go back to college, and this summer would be nothing but a flight, a painful one to end.

"Why do you look like a deer in headlights?" Justin asked with a frown. He still had hold of her hand even though she was already up, and they began walking out the door.

That surprised Allie even more as she looked over at him. He began threading his fingers through hers, sending another wave of shivers and goose bumps throughout her body. "I don't know." She sucked in a deep breath and sighed, deciding to be completely honest. "I guess I don't know the implications of 'going for a walk'. At least not with you."

Justin looked over at her, completely serious for once. What he said, though, made her think otherwise. "Well, I wouldn't ask Jeff or Steve to go for a walk with me on a late night when it was dark." He held up their hands for her to see. "I also wouldn't hold Jeff's or Steve's hand."

Allie couldn't help herself from smiling, but the minute she saw him smiling back she looked away. How could she let things get this out of hand? She'd known she couldn't get involved or have feelings for Justin. She'd just end up having to break it off again once she had to go back to college.


	5. Night Walk

_**Chapter Five**_

Justin stopped smiling the second Allie's own grin faded. He didn't know what to say or what she was thinking, so he just kept walking. Their house was on the edge of the housing development, and just beyond the road were the trees and land that hadn't been attacked by ground-hungry developers. The moon behind the trees looked like a scene from a horror movie, and he knew Allie felt it too, because she shivered.

"I would give you my coat, just like in movies, but I didn't bring one," Justin smiled over at her again, hoping that she wouldn't look away.

No, this time she held his gaze and said, "I'm perfectly fine, thank you."

He blinked. "Always independent, aren't you?"

Allie shrugged.

"I was hoping I'd get to take a walk with the Allie I'd spent most of the day with," Justin said bluntly. He didn't know what had gotten into him, turning into this serious, honest guy.

Allie didn't know what had gotten into Justin, turning into this serious, honest guy. Ever since he'd moved to her town and into her life years ago, he'd always been the funny, far from serious clown that entertained everybody around him. Now he was holding her hand and looking at her with… was that a _tender _expression?

"I didn't know to expect this from you, sorry, Justin," Allie said with another shrug. It seemed that all she'd done tonight was shrug.

He laughed. "Neither did I."

"You know," Allie said, half-changing the subject. "Jeff isn't as trustworthy as you think. He may be a nice guy, but he doesn't do well keeping secrets."

Justin looked over at her, smile gone and replaced with a frown. "Exactly which secret did he tell you?"

Allie grinned and kept her chin level. "The one that included me."

Now _he_ was the deer in headlights. He stopped. "Oh."

Suddenly sorry for making him embarrassed, she added, "And I'm sure he's told you my secret… the one that I didn't even know he knew. One that I now know I was way too obvious about."

Justin caught on to which secret she was hinting at. "The one in which you are in high school and have a serious crush on me?"

Allie laughed. "Oh, yes, that one."

He caught her gaze. "Is it true anymore?"

She immediately wanted to look away, but couldn't. His eyes were suddenly as captivating as they'd been in high school. _In high school, Allie, you were a lot smarter than to look him in the eye. _This time she wouldn't be able to get free of his stare.

He took her other hand as if prompting her, and she knew she had to answer. "I really don't know whether it's still true or not. It wasn't for a long while… through the last part of high school and the first two years of college. I'm not so sure about my resolve now," The ends of her mouth turned up slightly, "which I am sure you have planned. A moonlight walk, holding my hand? Of course you knew no girl could stick to her resolve with you being so… unlike yourself. Serious. Nice."

"It's unlike me to be nice?" Justin asked.

"You're always so sarcastic. Sometimes I don't know how to take it."

"The way you respond to me says otherwise."

"That is because after we went whitewater rafting that year, and you caught me when I tried to get out of the boat, I vowed I would never let you so horribly get the best of me like that ever again."

Justin laughed at the memory. "I can't believe you thought I was serious."

Allie glared back at him. "I didn't think you were serious. I was going to turn around to splash you, but at the last moment thought better of it because I knew it would start a war, and ended up falling out."

"And with that crush of yours, my catching you didn't help much, did it?"

Allie shook her head with a sad smile. "Nope. Only afterward when I played it over and over in my head did I realize you all thought that I thought you were serious."

Justin chose that moment to bring her into a hug, something she least expected. He'd never seemed the hugging type, as hardhearted and sarcastic as he was. She guessed this was her night to find out that he was a whole lot different than she'd thought before.

He drew back, and Allie suddenly knew what was going to happen. His face was so close to hers… his lips were inches away from hers, and he was slowly closing that distance. Her eyelids didn't obey her and slid shut, and she could feel his breath on her cheek.

A car came around the curve, finding them with its bright headlights on the edge of the curb, causing Allie to scream and Justin to jump back. Reality rushed back into their circumstance, and just as he was about to close the distance again, she let go of his hand and started rushing back to his house and her car. Only when she was halfway there did she realize how cold and empty her hand now seemed.


	6. Resolve

_**Chapter Six**_

Justin hurried after Allie, wondering where the moment had gone. In one second she was in his arms and they'd been about to kiss. Another second and she'd been rushing back toward her car and taking her hand from his.

He jogged after her, his arms suddenly feeling vacant, and he realized that it was because they were. She was not in them.

"Allie!" he shouted. "What's wrong?"

She stopped, only for a split second, to say, "I'm sorry. I just… realized something." She looked as confused as he as she approached her car, grabbing her keys out of her pocket and fiddling with them, her hands shaking as she tried to unlock her doors.

Justin put his hands over hers and took them from the keys, forcing her to look him in the eye. "I'm being serious. I'm not being sarcastic. I just… I want you to tell me what just happened." He looked away, knowing very well what had occurred. He'd tried to kiss her and scared her away in the process.

Allie shook her head, pulling away from him. "Justin, I can't get attached to anyone here. I have to go back to college."

He was confused. "So soon? I thought you didn't have to go back for another two months."

"I don't," she replied sadly. "But what's the point in creating something we'll just have to destroy when I have to go away again? I refuse to make it painful for myself… or you."

Justin enveloped her into his arms once again. "I'm sorry."

"You'd better be sorry. You're tearing my resolution to bits as we speak," Allie whispered into his ear. She was trying to sarcastic and reserved, but he could tell her statement was true, but he didn't pull back.

"Allie…"

She ducked out from under his arms and looked at him seriously. "Justin, it's only been three weeks. You haven't seen me for two years. I went on a mission's trip last summer for most of the time I was out of college. And all of a sudden when I come back you decide you're attracted to me? There's got to be something wrong with that… we can't start a relationship off of three weeks."

"I've known you all throughout high school, Allie."

"You knew me throughout the last part of high school. The Allie before that was shy and embarrassed, intimidated by your teasing and cynicism."

"I know you now, Allie. I'm sure of it. Why can't we have just these two months… the only way I'm going to get to know you better is if I spend more time with you."

"I can't do that. I'm just going to hurt your feelings and mine. I can't pretend like everything is perfect when it's not. I can't play make-believe, like I'm done with college and I'm ready to start a relationship, because I'm not. I'm not willing to be attached to you and put myself _and_ you through pain we can both do without. Two months of fun and romance might be great, but I don't think it will be worth two years of pain."

Justin watched her face harden until it was expressionless. He'd just ruined her fun-loving and cheerful personality. Now she would be nothing but serious around him. She might return his one-liners, but never with the same vigor or teasing attitude as before. It would probably never be the same.

And as she drove away, the glare of her lights backing out of his driveway with a sense of finality, he knew that she was right. At the end of their two months, this same moment would replay itself. Except the pain in his heart and the sense of loss would be ten times as strong.


End file.
